Qin Junyao saw that Qin Sen's expression was not fake and agreed.
She had other things to ask Qin Sen, "Third Uncle, my father..."
Qin Sen raised his hand, "Your father is fine. With your grandmother here, what are you afraid of?"
"Take good care of yourself, let the servants do everything. You are not what you used to be. Keep some more money on hand, and it's important to give birth to the child safely first."
"Come inside, it's cold outside."
Qin Sen, dressed in a long robe, turned and walked out of the gate, then disappeared behind it.
Qin Junyao stood at the door for a while before turning to find Grandma Qin.
Third Uncle was different. He was very much like Ling Manshuang, not in appearance, but in temperament.
As Qin Sen read more and was introduced to some gentry by Bai Qing, the subtle aura around him grew stronger.
One must know that the gentry in the Northwest were officials who had retired and returned to their hometowns.
The fact that Qin Sen could maintain regular contact with them indicated that these gentry thought highly of this young man from a farming family.
Qin Junyao asked the servants and found Grandma Qin and Fuzi in the servant's quarters where the girls were housed. The two were talking animatedly.
"Grandma Qin, I want a maid, not a male servant," Fuzi said, unwilling to let go of the pigtail on a round-faced little girl's head.
Grandma Qin slapped Fuzi's hand, which was grabbing the girl's hair, "Let go. Why do you, a boy, want a maid?"
Fuzi looked at the round-faced little girl and tried to negotiate, "Boys can have maids, I've seen them."
"No, if you want one, go pick one from that room."
"But..." Fuzi tugged at his clothes. "But there are no round-faced ones in that room."
Grandma Qin tied a pigtail on a girl's head with a hair tie and asked Fuzi curiously, "What's wrong with round faces? Do you think melon-faced people have nightmares?"
Fuzi pursed his lips and told the truth, "I want to pinch them. You guys always pinch my face, and I want to pinch others' faces too."
"Heh heh."
Qin Junyao, who was listening at the door, chuckled. She thought Fuzi had some bad intentions.
She wondered who this child had learned from at such a young age, only to find out he simply wanted to pinch people's faces.
"Sister-in-law, I want a maid," Fuzi ran to Qin Junyao's side seeking an ally.
Qin Junyao reached out and pinched Fuzi's chubby cheeks. They felt so good.
"It's not possible. See, your brother has never had a maid. How about this, you go to the next room and pick someone you like, and then you feed him until he's plump. Then he'll have a round face, won't he?"
Fuzi's eyes lit up. This was a great idea. He ran to the next room with a patter.
From then on, Fuzi's male servant's physique and face were destined to become rounder and rounder.
"Grandma, are you taking care of all these children yourself?" Qin Junyao counted ten girls in this room.
"Huh? Grandma, aren't there too many children? We only made thirteen sets of winter clothes for the New Year."
Qin Junyao counted again. There were indeed ten girls, and with the boys next door, there were nineteen in total.
Grandma Qin, her hands busy tying a hairband, said, "We hired an old woman before. Don't let their young age fool you, these children are very sensible."
She pointed to a few girls on the kang, "These older ones can do everything at home, like washing clothes and cooking. They can also change the diapers and feed the younger ones."
"Alas, the extra children were bought before the spring plowing. They were all boys. We sold them to buy grain seeds."
Qin Junyao touched her nose and looked at the older girls on the kang, "Are they eight years old, Grandma?"
"Hmph," Grandma Qin snorted, "Do they look eight years old? The oldest is only six."